Feb. 7, 2018

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Three members of the Virginia women’s lacrosse team were named to the Preseason All-ACC Team voted on by the league coaches, the conference office announced on Wednesday (Feb. 6).

Senior midfielder Kasey Behr (Northport, N.Y.), junior midfielder Maggie Jackson (Alexandria, Va.) and junior defender Kaitlin Luzik (Alexandria, Va.) were named to the Preseason All-ACC.

Behr earned All-America honors and was a second team All-ACC selection a year ago. Behr is one of the top returning scorers for the Cavaliers after netting 33 goals in 2017. Behr also handled the majority of the draws and totaled 39 draw controls, 34 ground balls and forced 24 caused turnovers. She has also been selected as a 2018 Preseason All-American by Inside Lacrosse.

Jackson was an All-American and first team All-ACC last season for UVA. The midfielder led the Cavaliers with 74 points on the season, scoring 41 goals with 33 assists. Jackson was the lone player in the ACC to lead her team in points, draw controls, ground balls and caused turnovers. Jackson is also a Preseason All-American by Inside Lacrosse Face-off Yearkbook.

Luzik was a second team All-ACC selection in 2017. Starting every game on defense, Luzik totaled 42 ground balls, 38 draw controls and had 21 caused turnovers last season.

Virginia was picked to finish fourth in the ACC Preseason Poll, behind No. 1 North Carolina, No. 2 Syracuse and No. 3 Boston College. The Cavaliers enter the season ranked 13th in the Cascade Media Poll and 14th in the IWLCA Coaches Poll.

The Cavaliers return seven starters from 2017. Along with Behr, Jackson and Luzik, senior goalkeeper Rachel Vander Kolk and sophomore midfielder Sammy Mueller return as Inside Lacrosse Preseason All-Americans. Vander Kolk has started every game in the net during her career and Mueller was named the ACC Freshman of the Year in 2017.

Virginia will open the season at home against Elon on Saturday, Feb. 17, at 1 p.m. at Klöckner Stadium.

Fans may purchase tickets online at VirginiaSports.com or through the Virginia Athletics Ticket Office in Bryant Hall at Scott Stadium. The ticket office is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. for in-person or telephone purchases. Telephone purchases can be made by calling 1-800-542-UVA1 (8821) or locally at 434-924-UVA1 (8821).

Preseason ACC Coaches Poll

  1. North Carolina (59 points, 4 first-place votes)
  2. Syracuse (53 points, 2 first-place votes)
  3. Boston College (48 points, 2 first-place votes)
  4. Virginia (39 points)
  5. Notre Dame (37 points)
  6. Duke (23 points)
  7. Virginia Tech (19 points)
  8. Louisville (10 points)

Preseason All-ACC Team
A – Sam Appuzzo, Jr., Boston College
A – Ela Hazar, Sr., North Carolina
A – Riley Donahue, Sr., Syracuse
M – Dempsey Arsenault, Jr., Boston College
M – Maddie Crutchfield, Sr., Duke
M – Maggie Bill, Sr., North Carolina
M – Marie McCool, Sr., North Carolina
M – Kasey Behr, Sr., Virginia
M – Maggie Jackson, Jr., Virginia
D – Elizabeth Miller, Jr., Boston College
D – Erin Kelly, So., North Carolina
D – Hannah Proctor, Jr., Notre Dame
D – Alexa Radziewicz, Jr., Syracuse
D – Kaitlin Luzik, Jr., Virginia
G – Lauren Daly, Jr., Boston College
G – Samantha Giacolone, Jr, Notre Dame